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**Editor's Note: Click herefor our list of November's hottest selling smartphones to see how the Lumia 920 compared to the iPhone and other rival devices at the major U.S. carriers.**

Nokia, which has made it a habit of offering its Windows-based flagship smartphones to just one carrier in many markets over the past year, appears ready to branch out.

The carrier announced on its U.K. Facebook page that the Lumia 920 – marketed to both the business user and the general consumer in an advertising blitz that's been hard to miss this holiday season – will be "available from other retailers from January onwards." It's been an exclusive in that country to mobile carrier EE (formerly Everything Everywhere, the parent company of Orange and T-Mobile in the U.K.) since its debut this fall. O2, Three and Vodafone might be getting their hands on the Lumia 920 soon, according to phones review.

AT&T has had a U.S. exclusive on the Lumia 920, a phone based on Microsoft's Windows 8 platform, since its launch in November. Ma Bell also nabbed a stranglehold on the 900 – Nokia's Windows 7-based flagship that debuted this past spring.

Many have questioned Nokia's decision to limit the number of carriers that can sell its phones (particularly its best). While there's been a buzz surrounding the Windows devices, sales of the first fleet (Windows 7) started off hot, but quickly faded; the Lumia 920 reportedly sold out at many retailers on Black Friday, but some industry insiders claimed that was due more to a supply shortage than an overwhelming desire for the handsets.

This news surely has customers at Verizon Wireless, Sprint, T-Mobile and other U.S. carriers wondering if they soon will be able to get their hands on the best of what Nokia has to offer in the new year. Verizon seems the least likely because it just got its own Nokia exclusive – the Lumia 822, it's first new Nokia phone in years – although it's a step down from the 920. Verizon sells it for $50 on contract.

The Lumia 920 has a 4.5-inch display; captures 1080p HD video; a dual-core, 1.5GHz processor; 1GB RAM; and a battery good for 13 days on standby. AT&T sells it for $100 on contract; it's one of the cheapest high-end handsets from any manufacturer available.